Chapter 44 – Forging One’s Path.

Callie had wanted it to be a footnote, a mention in passing, but apparently she wasn’t allowed to have it that way. They had made a mess at the Morestone estate after all, and in their wisdom, Julia’s parents had decided to message her parents as well. Callie could see no way in which that would go well for them, had even told them as such, but events, once set in motion, could not be stopped. She had just considered walking away before they arrived, but it was something that she needed to face, and to be honest, it would be better to get it over with now rather than later. She was not the same girl that she had been before they’d left, nor was she alone.

Her parents had not actually come themselves though, instead sending a squad of spellswords along with one of the family cars. A threat and an invitation. The threat meant nothing to them – none of the spellswords would be a challenge, they just didn’t have the experience or magic to be an issue, not any more. As for the invitation, they took that. Stella, at least, enjoyed the experience.

The family estate held nothing for her. No sense of belonging, no sense of home. It never really had, and any last shreds that had remained had gone when she had left it seven years ago to make her own home with Uriah. Walking up the stairs and in the front door just reminded her of how much her parents liked to flaunt their wealth and power, and how much she hated that now. Of how oppressive it all really felt, and of how different their worlds really were now, even if they didn’t realise it. At least no one tried to stop them or separate them like last time.

She had to admit that she was getting irritated by the time they reached her father’s study. They could have met them in one of the waiting rooms, or even by the front door. But no, as a show of control, they had to make their way to them, to the place where all of the talks took place. Where her parents had always attempted to exert their authority. Callie didn’t knock, she just went straight in, the others trailing behind her, Stella looking around curiously from Uriah’s arms. It was something, seeing him carry their daughter, and brought a warmth to her heart. He really had become the father of her child, just like he’d promised.

Just like last time her mother was seated at the desk, hands sitting on each other as she maintained perfect posture, a stern look on her face. Her father stood by the window, hands crossed behind his back, turning as they entered. A flicker of confusion crossed his face before it too took on a scowl, that perpetual displeasure with whatever decisions she decided to make.

“Where have you been for the last three days, Fraser?” It was her mother who spoke up first, looking straight at her.

Callie flinched. She couldn’t help it. That name wasn’t her any longer. It had never been. She glared back, crossing her arms across her chest. “I’m not sure if I should be flattered, or just plain insulted.” Angry, though, was a definite. “I don’t look the same as I did before, and yet you still claim to recognise me. As I said before, the last time we talked, my name is Callie.”

It was kind of satisfying, watching the emotions war across her mother’s face, her mouth twitch. She was pretty certain that she wanted to scream out the same bull that she always had, about Callie always being her son and everything that trailed off that excuse, but she was holding it in. Her father on the other hand, was being stone-faced about it all.

“I’ll give you a short run down, as we did Julia’s parents, because I guess you deserve at least that. Riddling threw us through a rift into another realm, one where time flows a lot faster. In that time, in that place, we became more than a little close, and had a child. Uriah is my husband, just as I had declared. Julia is my wife, through our own volition, as is Felicia. They are my family now, more than you ever were.” She could see her mother’s frown deepen, the disapproval just sitting there, waiting to be spat out, but she hadn’t finished. She’d say everything that she intended, and then that would be it.

“We don’t intend to stay here long, because this realm really isn’t our home any longer. None of this is for show, this is who we really are. Features and all, and I am as inhuman as they are, even if I don’t look it.” Callie grinned, her fangs on show, reinforcing the point. “Even in this world, where you think that you have control and understand so much, there is a so much more that is beyond you.”

“You stripped everything away, mother, father, in an effort to exert control over me. In that moment, you lost any final claim that you may have had of me as your child. Sure, we might be related by blood, but that is the extent of it, and it holds no meaning to me any more. We are our own people, and we will live our own lives, and you will never have any involvement in your granddaughter’s life. We also formally leave the Guardians, to strike out our own path elsewhere. Magic is not a tool for you to wield to exert your influence over everyone around you. It is a part of everyone’s lives, of this world.” Callie took a deep breath, almost done. “And I will ask once more, that you return everything that you illegally took from Uriah and myself. While it will have limited use for us now, it was never yours to take in the first place.”

“Where will you go?” Her father’s voice was quiet. Resigned.

“Another country, another realm. Somewhere where our daughter can grow up and be herself.”

Her father looked at her, at all of them, and then turned to face the window again, gazing out. “Leave.” It wasn’t said with malice or hatred, but rather a finality. An acceptance. Reinforcing all that she had said.

It was almost a relief, a weight of her shoulders, as they walked out of the estate, Callie ignoring the shouts of her mother behind her. Of how he was ignoring all that they’d done for him, ignoring his family, his responsibilities. Of the mess that he’d caused. Of what he was denying them. Callie shook her head, drowning it out. Even in those final moments, her mother was ignoring her name, ignoring her gender, who she really was. She hadn’t changed at all, and now it seemed that she was angry, because she’d never get to see or experience the granddaughter that she hadn’t even known that she’d had. Her mother had sealed her fate there a very long time ago.

“Hey Uri?” she asked, taking his hand, a smile on her face.

“Hmm?” Uriah gave her a confused look, not at all certain about what she was about to ask. After all, both of them had assumed that the visit would go much worse.

“Do you think I’d look good with piercings?”

A smile broke out across his face as he looked at her. “Yes, I think that you would.”

---

The cafe was exactly as Callie remembered it. Granted, less time had passed than what had for them, but even still, it felt as if time had completely stopped for this place. Neat wooden tables with cardboard menus folded in a triangle sitting on top, a small vase of flowers for each one, the smell of coffee and freshly baked spice muffins hanging in the air. Even the proprietor looked to be the same age as when she’d last been here with Uriah a few years back, and all of the staff seemed familiar. Tucked away on a side street, it was one of those cafes that was only visited by those who knew that it was there, and that had been the reason that she had chosen it, but even so, they were getting looks. Lots of them.

Callie sighed. She shouldn’t be surprised. She had kind of hoped that people would just be polite enough to ignore them, but it wasn’t every day that you saw a person with animalistic features, more so three of them. Probably never, actually. Sure, they could always argue it away as costume accessories or something, but it wouldn’t take the average person long to realise that they were in fact very real, nor did she want to bother trying. It was a part of who they were, and she was proud of her spouses and daughter. At least there had been no inappropriate or rude comments thus far, and no questions.

Not that it seemed to be bothering Stella much at all. She’d noticed, and pointed it out in her innocent and oblivious way, and then been entirely distracted by the bowl of hot chips that had been placed on the table, along with her glass of strawberry milk.

“More yummy milk, please mumsy?” Stella asked, holding out the empty glass and giving the cutest pleading look that she could, a line of pink milk across her top lip.

Callie chuckled, grabbing a napkin and giving her daughter’s face a wipe. “You’ll burst if you drink too much of that, darling.”

“But it’s yummy!” she pouted.

“No more darling,” Callie repeated with a shake of her head. “You’ve had far too much sugar today.”

“Chip?” Stella tried hopefully.

“Sure,” Callie relented, selecting a couple of them, and then passing them to her daughter once she was sure that they weren’t too hot. Of course that would just make her thirsty, but she could have some water instead.

“I swear you spoil her more than the rest of us,” Julia teased, brushing some of Stella’s hair out of her face.

Callie leaned over, and gave Julia a kiss. “I’m not so sure about that. But she deserves it irrespective.”

“Single child, four parents.” Uriah shook his head. “She’s more than a little spoiled. She is very spoiled. But that is our prerogative.” He couldn’t hide his smile as he gave their daughter another chip.

The bell above the cafe door tinkled, a gust of warm air blowing in, carrying with it the scent of the town, and two new arrivals. People who were very familiar to them. Callie watched as they walked their way over to them. Their clothes were the same as last time, Dryad’s very revealing and attracting every eye as she walked past, and Amber with her goth look, supplemented this time by some black makeup and attracting just as many stares.

“Oh, she’s cute! When are we having one?” Dryad said as she sat down, arms folded on the table as she leaned forward and gave Stella her biggest smile.

“Hello pretty lady!” Stella declared, before tilting her head contemplatively, fluffy ears twitching. “You’re like mumsy!”

“Am I?” Dryad responded with a chuckle. “I hope that’s a good thing.”

Stella gave a cute little shrug. “She kills bad people.”

Callie felt a chill go down her spine as Amber’s gaze rested on her, the vampire having seated herself beside her lover, glass of water in her hands. A long hard stare, only interrupted as Stella turned to look at her, frowned, and hissed. That at least seemed to get a reaction from Amber.

“What have you done?”

“That’s a very open question, Amber,” Callie answered with a sigh. “And I could ask the same of you. You owe us answers. A lot of them.” Reaching into the bag on the seat beside her, she pulled out Soryen’s dagger, and placed it on the table in-between them. The flicker of recognition was unmistakable.

“Are you sure you want to talk here?”

“Yes. Stella is enjoying herself, and it’s been a long time since we’ve been able to enjoy an atmosphere like this. Probably the last time for a long while too.

“You have plans?”

“We have plans... that rely on you.” Callie sighed again, sinking back into the seat. “Perhaps I’m being foolish, after all that has happened, all that we’ve learnt, all that you and others have done, but I want to be able to trust you, Amber. You are, in the end, the reason why we have what we have now. The reason that our daughter is even able to be.”

“The bond array...” Amber’s eyes went wide, her fangs teasing her bottom lip. “Show me your full mark.”

There was no power behind it this time, just the simple request. Slipping off her hoodie, Callie stretched out her arm, and then turned slightly, so that Amber could see her back. Her mark now flowed down over her shoulder blade and down to the centre of her back. Granted, part of the mark would be covered by the sports top, but she wasn’t going to be taking that off. She’d never seen herself as a tattoo girl either, but she didn’t mind her mark. It was a part of her and her magic, after all. Maybe that was part of the reason that she wanted piercings now as well, but hey, she found the look attractive, and the smile that Uriah had given her when she’d suggested it had just sealed the deal.

“By the gods...” Amber stared at her for a bit, eyes taking her all in, before she then looked down at the table and took a long drink, scowling at the taste.

“Coffee’s more palatable,” Julia quipped as Callie put her hoodie back on. She wasn’t going to show it to the whole world.

“She’s the child of all four of you, isn’t she?” Amber eventually said, pushing the glass of water away from her.

“Yes. In all senses.”

Amber narrowed her eyes. “You have no idea how dangerous that is, how dangerous she is. Vampires are turned, not born.”

“Oh, it gets more complex than that,” Callie said as she picked up Stella and gave her a hug, her daughter squealing in delight. “And that’s ignoring the ways in which the bonds have changed us all.” She teased her bottom lip with one of her fangs for emphasis.

“We are bonded you know,” Dryad said, leaning back and causing Callie to blush. “And we’re both rather powerful, all things considered, but even so, it’s nowhere near the strength of what you have. Nowhere as intimate. I’m somewhat jealous.”

“Do you want it to be?” Amber looked over at her lover, a slight tinge to her cheeks. “They just went all in, no restraints, nothing withheld. Taking everything that is involved. The good and the bad. Yes, that she has a title is part of it, but so do we.”

There was a moment of silence as Dryad looked back, Callie feeling uncomfortable, like they were intruding on a private part of their lives, before she finally spoke. “Yes, I would like that.”

Callie felt it, a surge of power as magic flowed between them. Delicate, intimate. Passionate. Both ladies blushed, magic flowing around their fingers as rings manifested on them. Delicate bands of gold inlaid with two gems. One ruby, one emerald.

“Why did you not do that when you two first made it official?” Callie asked. It had just been that way for them from the start after all.

“Because we were more cautious. I’ve been hurt, many times. We both have. Magic is dangerous, and always double bladed. I said as much when I gave Julia her gift.”

“And because you two weren’t fully aware of the potential. You borrowed some of that understanding from us, didn’t you?” Julia narrowed her eyes at Amber, her expression somewhere between a grin and a scowl.

Amber shrugged, her eyes betraying her amusement. “You are my daughter, after all. We do have a connection. Your growth in power though is impressive, much more so than I ever expected, and that’s ignoring the effects of your bonds. How long were you there, in that other realm?”

“Two years.”

Amber blinked, leaning back in her seat as she looked at them, and at Stella. “A dying realm...”

“It’s gone now, Amber,” Callie said, her voice low, unable to hide her sadness. “It collapsed a month after we returned, no one left to hold it together. Because...” She didn’t want to finish that thought. She didn’t know the full truth. Not yet, anyway.

“What happened, Callie?”

“Riddling happened.” Callie frowned at the memory of the man. She really, really, hoped that he was dead now, that he would never bother them again, but there was that fear in the back of her mind that perhaps he’d show up again, at some point in the future. Yes, they’d seen his charred corpse, but his title freaked her out. The way that it just seemed to hang there, like a blot, a stain, on the tapestry of life.

Amber gave her a look, eyebrow raised, waiting for her to continue.

“We’ll show you what happened, Amber, what we’ve been through, and the events of the last day too, as a show of trust, and because I think that you need to know. The consequences of the actions of your group. Yes, we all benefited. This realm, all of us, and you and your group as well, but the cost was catastrophic. That knowledge, the final moments, and their wishes and dreams, are something that we will carry for the rest of our lives. I carry a part of them all, after all. Of every totem.” Callie paused, watching Amber’s reaction. She wasn’t giving much away, looking at her more with curiosity than anything else now. “Yes, we want answers from you, and knowledge too, but more than that, we’d like friendship. We have, after all, been rather violently thrust into your world.”

“Show, huh? Rather than tell?” Her choice of words hadn’t been lost on Dryad.

“I don’t think we ever learnt your name?" Two could pick on particulars.

“That’s because I never mentioned it.” Dryad gave her a soft smile. “It’s Laurenya.”

“Laurenya,” Callie repeated, feeling how it sounded to say it. “That’s a nice name.”

“So...” Laurenya gave her a questioning look.

“Please don’t reject the magic.” Callie let the array flare to life around them, the glow bright and sudden. They already had a connection, and she knew the spell well enough now that she didn’t need a physical manifestation. No lightning theatrics, no damage to the cafe. If she was lucky no one would notice anything, unless someone sensitive to magic was nearby.

Her mindscape was still pure white. She was a little disappointed in that, but on the other hand, she had no idea what would trigger the change. Time, probably. And experiences. She had a lifetime of those ahead of her, and she was looking forward to it. Everyone was there. Her spouses, daughter, and Amber and Laurenya. Stella was giggling, looking around in wonder that everything had suddenly changed, and the guests new to here were looking more intense. Laurenya looked a lot greener, more alive, and more seductive, while Amber’s presence bordered on terrifying. How close was she to being one of the original vampires? There were such things, right?

“Where did you learn this one?” Amber asked with a sigh. “It’s not a form of magic that I recognise at all.”

“From a totem. The last one, Arianna.”

“A raw, primal spell, refined to something quite deliberate. You are full of surprises.” Amber’s presence seemed to soften a bit. “So, what is it that happened then? Show me these two years, and all that transpired around it.”

The benefit of the mindscape was that she could do that and more. She told Amber and Laurenya everything that had happened, starting from when Amber had turned Julia, and all that followed. Not all of the sex of course, intimate stuff was off the menu, but the experiences, the travels, and the battles, that she was going to share. Words, images, emotions. She told their tale with honesty, no hiding how she felt about some aspects, including Arianna’s death, and Riddling’s actions. Nor did she hide any of what had happened since their return. It had been a very long day, but she wasn’t sure when or where exactly it would end. Hopefully after this.

Amber sat in silence as the spell ended, the magic fading from around them. No marks, no indications remaining that she’d cast it. Just as always, only a mere moment had passed, even though Callie felt like she’d been talking for hours. There had indeed been a surge of power, but it seemed none of the patrons had noticed, and they weren’t getting any more glances their way than they’d already had.

“He didn’t deserve that end. He was a nice boy.” Amber reached out, finger lightly touching the dagger. “He should never have gotten involved. Not with E’iures. Not with any of this.” She shook her head, the sadness evident. “Alyther needs to know though. Perhaps it’ll help him accept all that has happened.”

“That we intended to do, but...” But they had no way of reaching him.

“Let me be the one to tell him,” Amber said with a wave of her hand. “We were companions for a time, and he may well still be sore after your last confrontation. He will listen to me, he is aware of my power. If he wants to meet you after that, we can arrange it.” She looked thoughtful for a moment. “You know, he was one of the creators of the Guardians, along with E’iures and Jean-mark. They had a massive fallout about a decade ago, and he left.”

“Jean-mark? Were-bear?” That was her only guess, the only one whose name she’d never learnt.

“Is that what you called him?” Laurenya laughed. “It fits, though, even if that isn’t even close to his title.

“Is he still with the Guardians?”

“No. He fell in love and got married only a couple of years in, and then moved as far away as he could, to distance himself from it all. I doubt that we’ll hear from him for a couple more decades at least.”

“What, you’re surprised?” Laurenya laughed at Callie’s very much surprised expression. “We’re all people in the end, irrespective of gender and race, and he just happened to find something that was more important to him. He knew that he couldn’t leave, and unlike some of the others, he decided to make the best of it. Perhaps, in the end, he was the most sensible of us all.”

“Except he has a title, and powerful magic. He’ll outlive them all. His love, his family.” Julia frowned. “And that is kind of sad.”

“That is part of the cost of power.” Amber had a distant look. “That is why many of us are careful. He was well aware of that, and we did remind him. But it is his life, his choices.”

“Why did you never leave, Amber? Unlike the others, you two were never trapped here.” Callie wasn’t sure if she should ask, but in the end, it was important. She wanted to know, especially since this aspect of the vampire was rather important to them. They were going to need her help there after all. “You are, after all, a realmwalker, like Soryen.”

Amber looked surprised, Laurenya laughing beside her. “I told you they’d work it out. It is kind of obvious, after all.”

“It’s complicated.” Amber crossed her arms and leaned back in the chair. “And in some respects, this realm is rather fascinating. One young in magic, with many things that don’t exist elsewhere. In part guilt, in part a feeling of responsibility, and in part because I wanted to see who would rise out of it all. Titles are rare, but they exist in all of the realms. Those who have them have an impact on those around them, and the world around them too. It’s an inevitability.” Her eyes narrowed at Callie. “As you have, and will continue to do so. The Guardians here have always tried to keep magic under wraps, flexing their influence to do so. You know this, you were a part of it all, and yet, here you are, no longer hiding. It is only a moment in time, but it will have a ripple effect, no matter what your parents try to do.”

“What happened, Amber. What was it that you all did, that dragged the totems here?” And killed a realm. She didn’t want to add that though. Amber already knew now, from what she’d shown them, and her feelings on that. Perhaps they hadn’t realised the full consequences of their actions, but that was a poor excuse. She had felt Amber’s sadness though, even if it was just surface deep.

Amber took a deep breath, and sighed, playing with her fingers and her ring as she stared at the surface of the table. “We made a mistake, a big one. I knew that as soon as the magic activated, but by that point it was too late, and we had no option but to move forward with it. Some things are not reversible, once a threshold is crossed. And perhaps there was still an element of greed present as well. Blinded by the potential that could still lay ahead. For all that happened, E’iures’ arrays were more than impressive. A work of art almost, breaking rules and allowing things to happen that normally cannot. Should not. But there was always a cost with respect to them, a cost that was often paid for by the land itself. A cost that this world had never been able to support, too young in its growth.”

Amber looked up at her, sadness on her face. “It was called the grand working. A narcissistic title all things considered, but one that played to its proposed intentions. E’iures was good friends with Soryen, but I guess, as we know now, that was but a facade. It was something that they hatched together, a way, in theory, to save a dying kingdom. Alyther’s kingdom. And give those involved a little more as well. Blessings that turned out to be more real than I had ever thought. I was the outlier to all of this, a wanderer in the land, doing as I pleased. They knew of me though, and my power, and when the call went out for the heroes of the land to gather together to help save it from the waste that was eating away at it, I found myself being pulled into it.”

“Sure, sure.” Laurenya giggled, causing Amber to blush a deep shade of crimson. “I’m pretty sure it was because you saw a pretty lady that you found rather attractive, and then spent the better part of year trying to woo her, falling in love in the process.”

Callie blinked, looking at her with equal parts surprise and wonder.

Amber blushed again, tracing her finger gently across the ring. “Laurenya was engaged to Alyther. I... may have had eyes for her. When he eventually realised that she was no longer his, he broke off the engagement, but it wasn’t without some pain, and it did fracture the party quite a bit.”

“Not that we were a cohesive group in the first place,” Laurenya added. “I can’t say that I was happy with Alyther. But with Amber...” Callie had to look away, Laurenya’s smile making her blush.

“There was a lot of prep work for the spell. Anchor points to lay, cracks to open or reinforce. Shadows to purge. Arrays to lay. It was on a level like nothing that anyone had ever seen. Not even myself. It took the better part of a year and a half to go from conception to realisation. Not that we were privy to all of its parts, some of it being done in secret, delicate aspects that were dealt with by E’iures or Soryen. Connections that they had forged, reagents that needed to be gathered. Soryen disappeared a couple of months out from its completion, and perhaps that should have been a warning, but we were too involved, too deep at that point, to realise the truth behind it all.”

“We were naive.” Amber shook her head. “I was naive, even for all of my knowledge about it, about realms. About where the power was coming from. The true nature of these creatures. When the spell activated, when the totems were pulled from their realm, tethered by the magic that E’iures had crafted, held there by the sacrifice of their children, all I could see was the raw power, and the potential. To save the kingdom, breathe new life into it, and grant a measure of it to those involved. I... I never had need of it. Ever. Not with what I am. Laurenya, perhaps, but even then, we should have stepped away, before it had gotten to that point. I don’t think that E’iures ever had any intention of sharing that power with anyone else though. Sure, the arrays hinted at it, but he’d had other fail-safes in place. The truth of that will probably never be known though.”

“Because they didn’t let him.” Laurenya’s grin was vindictive. “The totems had their own plans, and we didn’t notice till it was too late. They used the rifts, shifting themselves into this realm, and dragging us along with them. We didn’t have to follow of course, but we were still trying to complete the grand working. The drop in our power was considerable, no longer boosted by the arrays that E’iures had set, another warning, but nothing compared to when they closed the rifts. That stung, on many levels. Then on top of that, they pretty much ignored us, casting their own spells, becoming the seeds that gifted magic to this world.”

“We benefited from that, as a side effect,” Amber said, picking up from her lover. “Everyone one within the effective radius did. Some more than others, depending on their compatibility. And then there was you, the little child right on the front lines, holding on to the small fox cub that you’d rescued. They’d taken notice of you, felt a kinship with you, and granted you their blessing. Born as the witch well before you awakened, along with your best friend.”

“Or perhaps you had already awakened, but were repressed instead?” Laurenya offered, seeing Callie’s expression as a memory jumped into her mind.

“Perhaps,” Callie agreed, sinking into Uriah.

“The rest is history. Well, for this side at least. We knew straight away that returning wasn’t going to be an option. Well, for them at least. I never revealed what I was, though I do wonder if E’iures had an inkling. We stayed together for a while, and then just drifted apart, the common cause gone. Alyther has never given up on his own world though, always seeking a way to return, to his people, to his kingdom. But I suspect that even he knows the truth. That his kingdom is no more, especially after all of this time. We felt it, just as we went between the realms, the drain and impact that the grand working had on the land. On his kingdom. I have no doubt that they paid the cost as well, torn apart by the hunger of the array. E’iures never gave up seeking the totems power it seems. As to what he did over these last twenty years I am not fully sure, but I suspect that there are a lot of things that I don’t want to know about on any level. For now, at least, he is gone.”

“Say what you will, place what blame you will. There is guilt there that we can never erase. We all had a part to play in it, aware or not.” Ambers smile was sad, but there was glint in her eyes, a fierceness, that said a lot more. “But remember that you benefited from it as well, both then, and now, E’iures’ arrogance and greed bringing your daughter into the world.”

Amber looked directly at her as she leaned back, folding her arms once again. “What you have between the four of you, Callie, is nothing short of astounding. I may have provided the catalyst, but you have taken it all and made it your own. And added so much more to it. You have surprised me, Callie the Witch. In many ways, and perhaps you remind me of times long past, of when I was a lot younger. I am not adverse to a friendship between us. In fact, I would rather like that. Perhaps it is time that we stretch our legs again. We both, after all, have outgrown this realm.”

Laurenya giggled as she leaned into Amber, threading her arm through her lovers, a playful smile accentuating her features. “A new party. That sounds nice.”